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Research article2019Peer reviewedOpen access

Assessing genetic diversity and similarity of 435 KPC-carrying plasmids

Brandt, Christian; Viehweger, Adrian; Singh, Abhijeet; Pletz, Mathias W.; Wibberg, Daniel; Kalinowski, Joern; Lerch, Sandrina; Mueller, Bettina; Makarewicz, Oliwia

Abstract

The global spread and diversification of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative (MRGN) bacteria poses major challenges to healthcare. In particular, carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains have been frequently identified in infections and hospital-wide outbreaks. The most frequently underlying resistance gene (bla(KPC)) has been spreading over the last decade in the health care setting. bla(KPC) seems to have rapidly diversified and has been found in various species and on different plasmid types. To review the progress and dynamics of this diversification, all currently available KPC plasmids in the NCBI database were analysed in this work. Plasmids were grouped into 257 different representative KPC plasmids, of which 79.4% could be clearly assigned to incompatibility (Inc) group or groups. In almost half of all representative plasmids, the KPC gene is located on Tn4401 variants, emphasizing the importance of this transposon type for the transmission of KPC genes to other plasmids. The transposons also seem to be responsible for the occurrence of altered or uncommon fused plasmid types probably due to incomplete transposition. Moreover, many KPC plasmids contain genes that encode proteins promoting recombinant processes and mutagenesis; in consequence accelerating the diversification of KPC genes and other colocalized resistance genes.

Published in

Scientific Reports
2019, Volume: 9, article number: 11223
Publisher: NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP

      SLU Authors

        • Associated SLU-program

        AMR: Bacteria

        Sustainable Development Goals

        Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

        UKÄ Subject classification

        Microbiology
        Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology

        Publication identifier

        DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-47758-5

        Permanent link to this page (URI)

        https://res.slu.se/id/publ/101160